Broad-billed Hummingbird

The Broad-billed Hummingbird brings a splash of color to canyon streams and desert washes of the American Southwest and Mexico. Adult males are richly colored, with a deep iridescent blue throat, emerald green body, and a notched, blue-black tail, all set off by a bright coral-red bill tipped in black. Females are duller, with a green back, pale gray underparts, a whitish stripe behind the eye, and the same distinctive red-based bill.

The combination of the bright bill color and, in males, the deep sapphire throat, makes this one of the more readily identifiable hummingbirds within its range.

Key Field Marks

• Bright red bill with a contrasting black tip, present in both sexes
• Male: iridescent blue throat, green body, dark forked/notched tail
• Female: green back, gray underparts, pale eye stripe, red-based bill
• Tail often held slightly cocked or flicked side to side

Similar Species

• White-eared Hummingbird also has a red bill but shows a bold white stripe behind the eye and a purple crown in males.
• Blue-throated Mountain-gem is much larger with broad white tail corners and lacks the red bill.
• Female Broad-billeds are best told from similar females by the red-based bill and pale eye stripe.

Habitat

This species favors shaded canyons with running water, streamside sycamore and cottonwood groves, and adjacent desert scrub in foothill and lower mountain elevations.

Range

It breeds mainly in southeastern Arizona, southwestern New Mexico, and western Texas, ranging south through much of Mexico.

Migration

Most Broad-billed Hummingbirds migrate south into Mexico for the winter, though small numbers regularly overwinter in the warmer canyons of southeastern Arizona.

Behavior

Males are territorial around good nectar sources and perform display flights to attract mates, often perching conspicuously on bare twigs between feeding bouts.

Voice

Calls include a dry, chattering rattle and sharp chip notes given during chases and territorial disputes.

Feeding

They feed on nectar from a variety of tubular desert and canyon flowers and supplement their diet with small insects caught in flight or picked from vegetation.

Nesting

Females build a compact cup nest of plant fibers and spider silk, typically low in a shrub or small tree near water, and raise the young without help from the male.